BURY ARE KEEN to return to the second tier of English football after a 19-year absence and they’ve called upon several Irishmen in their bid to do so.
Since their League One campaign ended last month with a disappointing 19th-place finish, manager Lee Clark has been busy with recruitment.
Clark, the former Newcastle United and Fulham midfielder, has already signed no fewer than five Irish players to add to his new-look squad.
After joining on loan from Premier League-bound Huddersfield Town in January, Joe Murphy has made his move permanent by signing a one-year contract.
Murphy will be joined in Lancashire by compatriots Eoghan O’Connell, Stephen Dawson, Callum Reilly and Jay O’Shea. O’Connell and Dawson have signed three-year deals, while Reilly and O’Shea have both committed for two years.
Among the other new arrivals at Gigg Lane ahead of the 2017-18 season is former Leeds United forward Jermaine Beckford, who’s set to partner James Vaughan up front — as long as they can hold onto the ex-Everton striker, who’s reported to be a target for several clubs after scoring 24 goals in his debut season for the club.
O’Shea, 28, is seeking to be involved in back-to-back promotions after helping Sheffield United to win League One last season while on loan from Chesterfield. The former Galway United winger had been offered a two-year deal to follow the Blades to the Championship but he has opted for Bury instead.
“It would be nice to replicate what happened at Sheffield United here next season. It’s going to be a tough league, but the gaffer is trying to put together a strong enough side to challenge for the top six and hopefully that’s what we’ll do,” said the former Irish U21 international, who has previously had spells with the likes of Birmingham City and Middlesbrough.
Murphy, 35, has been capped twice by the Republic of Ireland at senior level. Reilly, 23, is a former Irish U21 midfielder who moves to Bury from Championship outfit Burton Albion after a loan stint with Coventry City. Dawson, 31, is back for a second spell at Gigg Lane. The Dublin-born midfielder left the club in 2010 and most recently played for Scunthorpe United.
O’Connell, 21, like O’Shea, attracted plenty of interest from elsewhere after leaving Celtic, having impressed during a loan spell at Walsall last season. The Corkonian defender, another U21 international, made seven appearances for Celtic early last season, including a Champions League cameo against Barcelona at the Camp Nou.
“I’m thrilled that we were able to secure Eoghan’s signature as he’s a highly sought after young player. I obviously know a lot about Eoghan from my time up in Scotland,” said Clark, who tried to sign O’Connell during his time as Kilmarnock manager.
He added: ‘I’m also delighted about the backing from the chairman as I know that five or six other clubs approached Eoghan. Eoghan will strengthen the squad and we hope that we can help him further his international career.”
Bury’s newly-acquired Irish contingent will hope that they can help to steer the club back to the Championship for the first time since their relegation at the end of the 1998-99 season.
